I was voting regularly in the Bricklink Designer Programs and posting how my votes did and how they didn’t do. I have since stopped. Don’t get me wrong, there are some really talented builders out there and it’s great to see the efforts they put into it. In fact, one of the sets I voted for in Series 5 made it through voting. It’s a fairly small build considering some of the monstrous builds in the running and it’s something we haven’t seen before which will be offered at a somewhat more reasonable price. I like it!
But Bricklink, it’s time for change!!!
I enjoy the different sets the Bricklink Designer Program puts out and the opportunity for fans to participate, but let’s give it some time off. The themes seem to be similar everytime with lots of submissions of castles, city buildings, space craft, and pirates. I think the building community needs to take a break. Let’s finish up Series 6 that is up for voting consideration and then take some time off. Set a date for when the next round will be and maybe even re-consider the guidelines.
Then let’s come back in 6 months? 1 year? 18 months?
In that time period, there should be lots of fresh ideas and builders will have worked out their designs to be ready for the round of voting. Then let’s get those sets out and delivered before we start yet another round.
The constant churn of sets kills the excitement for them. I know I placed some orders for round 2, but without going to the website, I forget what they even were. It’s the same for series 3. I had to remind myself what it was and what I could order. I then placed my orders and will wait until March 2025 until I even see the sets which I will have forgotten by then.
Let’s fix this churn. People voted, we released the winning ideas, ideas were finalized, then give more time for the sets to get out there. I only saw a few reviews in the fan media before the ordering Series 3. Provide more time to build the hype and get the information out. Is that castle really great or do I not have enough information, but I’m a castle fan and I don’t want to miss out on this chance to own a castle set? Maybe have the sets at the LEGO House, fan conventions, or some LEGO Brand Stores so people can actually see them. Then open it up for the pre-orders once the reviews are out.
Don’t let it die off once the orders are made. Continue the excitement. Keep touring the sets around. More review videos maybe? Create a few extra sets to give away as prizes via some sort of challenge or sweepstakes for people who missed out.
I clicked on “My Pre-Orders” on Bricklink and it takes me to my LEGO Shop @ Home orders. Then you have to sort through and find the right ones, which may be from over 6 months ago. It would be great if it took you right to the sets you have on pre-order. Also, more insight as to how close you are to receiving them. These are exclusive, limited run sets that just randomly show up at my door without a big fanfare or announcement from Bricklink or LEGO.
And as I continue my rant, how about some sort of Bricklink GWP? A printed brick that says “Bricklink Designer Program: Series X” or a build of the Bricklink logo.
I will stop rambling…
The bottom-line is that I think Bricklink needs to liven the program up and they are missing out on the opportunity to build the brand and grow the program into something really cool other than some sets you have to wait 6 to 9 months to arrive.
Happy Waiting!
